Tourism Brief: Are Chinese Ready to Travel Again?

Every week, we curate top news and analyses on China tourism recovery and bring timely updates to our audience. Stay tuned.

1. Confidence index: Over 70 percent of Chinese surveyed expect tourism to recover after June

More than 70 percent of Chinese surveyed expect the tourism sector to recover after June, according to a newly released tourism consumption confidence index. It reveals that domestic tourism, especially short-range tours, will take the lead in recovering. Outbound tourism is likely to resume gradually in the second half of the year. The study was conducted in March with a sample size of 1,000 people and will be conducted once a month in the future.

About 4,000 scenic spots have reopened since COVID-19 has essentially been brought under control in China. Many have developed favorable policies, such as free entry, free parking and even free accommodation to attract visitors. About 43 million visits were made in China during the three-day Tomb-Sweeping holiday in April.

During the Tomb-Sweeping holiday in April, four offshore duty-free shops in Hainan received a total of 19,900 customers, down 26 percent over the same period last year due to the COVID-19 epidemic. However, sales rose to 125 million yuan (about 17.7 million U.S. dollars), up 31.58 percent year on year.

A full recovery may take 10 months, or even less, depending on the actions taken by private and public sectors, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). WTTC recommends stronger partnerships between governments and tourism players, as well as practical measures such as simplifying the visa process.